Did you know:
Periodontal disease is the most common disease in pets, with 85% of dogs and cats over the age of 1 year showing signs of dental disease?
Feeding Canine or Feline Dental diet helps to reduce dental plaque and tartar accumulation between cleanings
Dental diets do not provide treatment for existing periodontal disease (helps to prevent further buildup) and doesn't substitute for regular dental exams and professional cleanings
Trying to remove tartar from your pet's teeth yourself can potentially harm their mouths as you will damage the tooth surface by creating microscopic scratches, providing areas for bacteria to cling to, encouraging more rapid plaque formation, and ultimately making the problem worse.
Dental health care is an important component of your pet's overall health!
Out of all the members of one's family, the chances are it will not be difficult to guess who has the worst dental hygiene: our pets. They do not brush their teeth, nor do they floss, and this goes on for years - but you can help !
In puppies and kittens, deciduous teeth are replaced by the permanent teeth beginning at about 4 months of age, continuing until about 6 months of age.
Tooth Structure
An adult cat has 30 adult teeth An adult dog has 42 adult teeth
(A kitten has 26 deciduous teeth) (A puppy has 26 deciduous teeth)
What is gingivitis?
Gingivitis is the inflammation of the gingiva (also known as the gums). It is also known as a non-destructive (reversible) dental disease because with treatment gingivitis can be corrected. There are 4 stages or grades of dental disease, early and advanced gingivitis are grade I and II respectively. In the absence of treatment gingivitis can lead to periodontal disease.
What is periodontal disease?
Periodontal disease is the inflammation of some or all of a tooth's support (including bone holding a tooth's root in place). Also known as destructive or irreversible dental disease - it affects the gums and surrounding tissues of the teeth. Periodontal disease represents grades III and IV, early and established periodontitis respectively. If left untreated, periodontitis may cause loose, painful teeth as well as serious health problems including heart, kidney, and ocular disease, as well as septicemia (infection of the bloodstream).
How does periodontal disease develop?
Plaque, a transparent film consisting of bacteria and food particles, accumulate along the gumline and on tooth surfaces. If dental plaque is not removed, minerals in the saliva combine with it causing it to calcify, forming tartar, also known as calculus, within 3-5 days. Tartar, identified by its tan or brownish colour, is irritating to the gums, causing inflammation and reddening of the gum line (gingivitis) and bad breath. If the tartar is not removed it starts to build up under the gums, separating the gums from the teeth forming pockets and encouraging more bacterial growth. This leads to inflammation of the deeper tissues that support the tooth, loss of tissue attachments, and bone loss, resulting in tooth loss, gum recession, abscesses, and infection.
What are common signs of periodontal disease?
o Foul breath (halitosis)
o Sensitivity around the mouth
o Gums that are inflamed, receding, sore gums
o Drooling, difficulty chewing or eating
o Pain
o Anorexia, weight loss
o Irritability or depression and inactivity
What are the stages (grades) of periodontal disease?
There are 4 grades of periodontal disease:
Grade I - early or marginal gingivitis, with a mild amount of plaque and redness(reversible)
Grade II - advanced gingivitis, with subgingival (below the gum) plaque, gum redness and bleed on probing (reversible)
Grade III - early periodontitis, with subgingival calculus, gum redness and recession, pockets, and loss of bone support less than 50% (irreversible)
Grade IV - established periodontitis, with large amounts of subgingival calculus, severe inflammation, gum recession, loose or missing teeth, pus, deep pockets, and loss of bone support greater than 50% (irreversible). Notice the tooth root exposure here.
Gingivitis is reversible. Bone loss, once it starts, is not reversible.
What veterinary procedures treat periodontal disease?
Treating periodontal disease depends on the stage or grade of the disease. In all cases an initial dental and physical exam will be conducted to assess or give your veterinarian an idea of what stage of periodontal disease your pet has (and will determine the amount of time needed to complete the dentistry) so that an accurate quote can be given, and ensure that your pet is healthy enough to tolerate a general anesthetic. Pre-anesthetic blood testing is highly recommended to ensure that your pet can metabolize the anesthetic that will be used for the dentistry (metabolization is done by the liver, kidney, and lungs) and that they have enough white blood cells, red blood cells, and platelets to fight off any infection and clot if teeth are pulled. For advanced periodontal disease, where extractions will be required, your pet may be started on antibiotics days before the scheduled dentistry preventing the potential for infection.
Veterinary dental prophylaxis
It should not be surprising that dental health requires professional cleaning regardless of whether the mouth in question belongs to a person, a dog, a cat, a horse, or some other animal. Home care of teeth is never perfect and periodically tartar must be properly removed and the tooth surface properly polished and disinfected. At the McLean Animal Hospital we offer dental prophylaxis for both dogs and cats year round, but especially focus on it every February and March.
Our dentistries are performed under a general anesthetic (monitored by a veterinary technician) and will include a number of points listed below depending on the severity of your pet's periodontal disease.
A thorough gross dental examination while under anesthetic
Scaling - gross (visible) tartar is removed with our ultrasonic scalar and the more delicate tartar deposits are removed from below the gum line with handheld scalars
Probing and Charting - periodontal sockets are probed and measured to assess periodontal disease; these results are recorded on your pet's dental chart for future reference
Polishing - the enamel is polished to remove any unevenness left by tartar removal. by the dental scaling Dental radiographs and extractions as necessary +/- pain and antibiotic medications if required
Mouth flush and disinfection with an antibacterial mouthwash as the end of the dentistry
Once your pet's mouth has recovered or healed from their dentistry, continue with your home dental care of teeth brushing, feeding a dental diet, and giving dental chews to reduce the accumulation of plaque between cleanings.